Ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich pledges to fight for Ukraine. He addressed a press conference in southern Russia, appearing in public for the first time since he fled Kiev amid bloody riots.

Dozens of international reporters have flocked to the southern
Russian city of Rostov-on-Don after the fugitive Ukrainian
president announced he would hold a press conference there.

Before anyone was allowed to ask questions, Yanukovich decided to
set the record straight, saying he considers himself the only
legitimate president of Ukraine.

“No one has ousted me,” he told reporters. “I had to
leave Ukraine because of a direct threat to my life and the lives
of my family.”

It is the current Ukrainian parliament that is “not
legitimate,” the Ukrainian leader said, adding that the
people who took power in Kiev are “spreading the propaganda of
violence.”

“As you know, the power in Ukraine has been seized by
nationalist fascist-like fellows representing the absolute
minority of Ukrainians. The only existing way out of the
situation is fulfilling all that was stipulated in the [February
21] agreement between the president of Ukraine and the opposition
with participation of the foreign ministers of France, Germany
and Poland, and a representative of the Russian Federation,”
Yanukovich said.

#Yanukovich:
I'm an acting president; I haven't resigned, I haven't been
impeached, and I'm still alive (3ways a pres could be ousted -
IG)

He described the situation in Ukraine as “complete
lawlessness,”“terror” and “chaos”, saying
that the politicians, including MPs, have been threatened and are
facing threats of violence. It has nothing to do with the unity
government that was negotiated with the opposition, he added.

According to Yanukovich, the early Ukrainian elections announced
for May 25 are also completely “illegitimate” and he
will not take part in them.

Despite that, the ousted leader said he will “remain in
politics,” “keep on fighting for the future of Ukraine” and
return to his home country as soon as he receives
“international safety guarantees.”

‘Irresponsible politics of the West’

Yanukovich left Ukraine’s capital Kiev amid the worst surge of
violence in the country’s post-Soviet history, which left dozens
of people dead and hundreds injured. The pro-Maidan opposition
immediately capitalized on his absence from the city, dominating
the parliament, which then voted to strip the president of his
powers and announced early elections. It also placed the full
blame for the tragic events in central Kiev on Yanukovich, making
it a nearly indisputable allegation in local and Western media.

Yanukovich gave his own clear assessment of the events for the
first time in weeks, drawing a very different picture. The
violence and deaths in Ukraine are the “result of the
irresponsible politics of the West, which has encouraged
Maidan,” Yanukovich said.

US and other Western countries’ representatives “must take
full responsibility” for the fact that the agreement between
the president and the opposition leaders was not honored, he
said.

There remains, however, a chance for the country to change its
course and not to slip into chaos, Yanukovich said.

‘I lacked strength, I am sorry’

When asked if he feels ashamed of any of his own actions,
Yanukovich replied that he feels both ashamed and sorry for
“not having been able to stabilize the situations and stop
the mayhem” in Ukraine.

“I want to apologize to the Ukrainian people for what has
happened in Ukraine and that I lacked strength to maintain
stability,” he said.

Yanukovich also apologized to the Ukrainian riot police, Berkut,
for having to “suffer” while doing their duty of
maintaining peace and order. Police officers were “burned and
poured over by petrol bombs,” were “fired at and killed
by rifles” but still stood their ground, he said.

The Ukrainian leader then said he had not given any order for
police to fire live rounds until the rioters started using
firearms, putting the officers’ lives under threat.

Yanukovich refused to comment on the Ukrainian parliament’s
intention to try him in the International Criminal Court, saying
that an independent investigation has to be carried out first.
However, he stressed that “the scenario of bloodshed… was
drafted not in Ukraine.”

‘Crimea part of Ukraine, Russian presence a rumor’

Even as Yanukovich was speaking, the situation in Ukraine’s
Russian-speaking Autonomous Republic of Crimea was increasingly
getting out of the capital’s control. The Crimean parliament was
forming a new regional government while local "self-defense
squads" started actively patrolling strategic sites to prevent
provocations from Ukrainian radical groups.

Yanukovich said he understands the concerns of Crimeans, who want
to “protect their homes and families” from
“bandits.”

However, he then urged the people of Crimea not to let any
bloodshed or civil war happen. Crimea must remain a part of
Ukraine while maintaining broad autonomy, Yanukovich said.

The fugitive president ruled out any possibility that he will ask
Russia for military help to resolve the situation there. Also,
there is no confirmed information about Russia’s alleged military
presence in the region, Yanukovich said.

“I do not have any such official information,” he said.
“I did not have it back then [in Ukraine], and there isn’t
any now. This all has been on the level of some rumors spread by
somebody,” he told journalists.

Yanukovich made it to Russia from Crimea thanks to
“patriotically-minded officers,” who helped to “save
his life.” He has not yet met with Russian President
Vladimir Putin, but they have already talked over the phone.

When asked why he chose to leave Ukraine for Rostov-on-Don,
Yanukovich said that he has “an old friend there,” who
can provide him with a “temporary safe haven.”

‘Russia cannot abandon Ukraine’

Yanukovich received a lot of questions on Russia’s role and
possible actions in the Ukrainian crisis.

While saying “it is not correct” to tell Moscow what to
do, Yanukovich said he believes “Russia cannot abandon
Ukraine to its fate and should use all possible means to prevent
chaos and terror in its neighboring country.”

With that, Yanukovich made it clear he was “categorically
against any intervention into Ukraine and breach of its
territorial integrity.”

“The truth will prevail,” Yanukovich said in an
emotional conclusion to his comments to journalists, urging the
politicians that have seized power in Kiev to “leave”
for the sake of the Ukrainian people.

So far, there has been no indication that the new Ukrainian
authorities are considering returning to a dialogue with what
they consider an overthrown rival. A Kiev court on Friday issued
an order for Yanukovich’s arrest, while the Ukrainian parliament
(the Verkhovna Rada) earlier voted in favor of trying him at the
ICC in The Hague for alleged “crimes against humanity during
the recent peaceful protests.”